


A Bounty

by Centurion_Titus



Category: Skulduggery Pleasant - Derek Landy
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 08:38:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12477644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Centurion_Titus/pseuds/Centurion_Titus





	A Bounty

Chase Honor stood and watched the sun rise over the city of San Antonio. His quarry had fled to this city in Texas and so from there the border was only a short distance away. A bounty had been placed on Brutus Storm's head for multiple robberies and arson of mortal stores. As a bounty hunter it was Chase's job to catch him for the sanctuary was too busy. 

Once the sun had finally risen, Chase strode back to his Ford Mustang and climbed into the driver's seat pulling on his aviators. In a cloud of dust, Chase began the drive into the city and as always the radio presenters were saying it was going to be another hot day. 

At this time of day, the roads were empty but they were would soon pick up. Chase drove through the streets until he arrived at his house. It wasn't really his house for he didn't live there but it was one of his many places he stashed food and weapons.

Step in through the door, Chase deactivated the alarm and headed for the room at the back of the house. The door was four inches thick and made of steel. Chase liked to have the best protection possible for his weapons.

Stepping in, Chase selected a Glock 19 and picked up multiple clips for you could never have enough ammunition with you. That was what his time in Vietnam had taught him. Walking from his weapons room, Chase waved his hand and the door shut behind him. 

Now armed, it was time to find Brutus. Chase had lost him the previous day but he knew Brutus was headed here and so it was time to make some calls. 

“Mike. I need a favour.”

“What is this? Your fifth favour already? Go ahead shoot.”

“I need your help finding an individual. I need access to all the cameras in this city. This man I need to find before he heads to the Mexican border.”

“What you are asking of me is illegal. If any sanctuary official or mortal official caught me then, there would be no more Mike. This favour I need to be paid for.”

“Fine. I transfer the money and send you a picture of the guy I need to find. Any hit you get, no matter the time, you tell me.”

“Right. I got cameras to hack so if you wouldn't mind leaving now.”

With that Chase simply hung up the phone and sat and waited. The hours began to slowly tick away but Chase continued to sit and wait. Eventually his phone buzzed, he looked down and it was an address of a bar. 

Chase flew out of the door and in moments was flooring it down the road towards the bar. Reckless driving meant that Chase arrived at the bar in minutes. Parking across the street, Chase proceeded to wait for Brutus. 

It wasn't long before he came out of the bar and so that was Chase's signal to act. Sliding out of the car, he darted across the street narrowly avoiding a bus. 

“Mr Storm”

Brutus turned.

“You need to come with me now. If you resist then I will be forced to take you down.”

“But you see, I have an appointment I need to make and so you will have to wait.” Brutus calmly said all the while the hand behind his back began to crackle with energy.

“I have been told dead or alive Mr Storm”

Chase drew the Glock from behind his back and pointed it straight at Brutus' head. The people who had been streaming past suddenly began to run as they saw Chase's gun.

The stalemate seemed to last for eternity, but it was little more than a few seconds. Brutus let loose a stream of energy at Chase, who was forced to dive out of the way. 

Rolling to his feet, chase fired off a few shots at Brutus, but he wasn't hit. In the confusion Brutus had drawn his own gun and began to return fire. This was not Chase had wanted. A fire fight, with the addition of magic in broad day light, in full sight of the public.

Chase leapt to his feet, splaying his hand to make a wall of air. The bullets simply slammed into the air, leaving Chase untouched and all the while Chase fire back. What the wall of air couldn't stop was a stream of energy.

“Damn energy throwers!” Chase thought to himself as dived once more out of the way. The sound of sirens began to fill the air. “And now cops!” He thought to himself. 

Holstering his gun, Chase summoned two fireballs and charged Brutus throwing both. Brutus dived into the road narrowly avoiding a car, which came to an abrupt halt just metres from him. Brutus scrambled to his feet and pulling the driver from the car he had narrowly avoided. 

Chase fumbled for his gun and emptied the rest of the clip into the departing car. It was in vain for Brutus managed to simply drive away. Chase sprinted for his Mustang and put his foot down, by the time he reached the point Brutus had jacked a car, he was out of sight.

Realising that driving like a lunatic would get him pulled over, Chase slowed his speed and headed back to his house.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, he texted Mike the details about the car in a hope that the cameras would pick him up. 

It was only after the adrenaline began to wear off that Chase realised he had a large amount of glass embedded in his left hand. Chase stumbled into his bathroom and reached for the first aid kit. With much wincing the glass fragments were pulled, the wounds doused in disinfectant and bandaged up. He even reached for the small packet of leaves he had and began to chew on one. Almost immediately he felt the irritating pain in his hand lessen. 

With a map thrown across the table, pen in one hand and phone in the other, Chase began to make inquiries into known forgers in San Antonio area. Circles began to appear on his map and soon he had a list of four properties who made passports, papers and credit cards for the right amount of money. By the looks of it Chase had a busy few hours to come.

Of the first three buildings Chase raided, they had no clue who Brutus was and so Chase simply left after tossing a few fireballs into the mounds of paper at each site. It was only at the last site and after much coercion that the forger began to talk. 

Chase had Viper Strait pinned to a wall and a wall of air was slowly crushing her chest. 

“Yes!” she screamed. “He came in here for all the papers to get into Mexico and start a new life. He came early this morning to ask for them and collected them this afternoon in a car riddled with bullet holes.”

“Where is he now? Tell me now!”

“I don't know” Viper gasped. “I don't know. I don't ask. I just do the work.”

Chase released his hold on Viper and let her drop to the floor with a heavy thud. As always Chase tossed a few fireballs behind him as he left, not caring whether Viper made it or not.

His leads had all run dry and so it all came to whether Mike could find him. The clock was ticking. It was at that moment Chase's phone began to vibrate. It was simply a text saying:

“Heading for Laredo on Route 35. Has a head start.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Chase slammed is foot down on the accelerator and headed for Route 35. He swerved in between traffic, jumped red lights and stop signs all to catch Brutus. As soon as he hit the highway, Chase put his foot down even more and began to hit speeds of over a hundred miles an hour. 

It was a two and half hour journey to the border, driving at the speed limit which he hoped Brutus would be going for he knew he wouldn't want to attract attention. The highway was filled with other cars and lorries and so the pursuit became ever more dangerous, but not for one moment did Chase let off the accelerator. 

He must have been driving for around an hour when he saw the car that Brutus had stolen and it was at the same time Brutus saw a car flying up the high way over and under taking everything. Putting his foot down Brutus accelerated in a hope of out pacing Chase, but he was driving a car which lacked the power. A complete contrast to the one Chase was in.

It was at that moment that Chase's Mustang slammed into the back of the car Brutus was in. He lurched forwards. Another slam followed and another but still Brutus managed to keep control of the car. In the end the two cars began dangerous dance of smashing and dodging. Other road users were forced to swerve or slam on their brakes to avoid the to cars, but now and then another car would be hit. 

At one point Chase and Brutus began to shoot at each other but they had no hope of aiming for they were constantly changing lanes and were going at ridiculous speeds. At one point Brutus began to unleash streams of energy at Chase, who was forced to avoid them at all costs. 

Chase had no luck whatsoever when ever he tried to use his magic. His fireballs would soar past Brutus. His walls of air would be broken through like they were nothing. The cloud of moisture he created in front of Brutus did nothing to slow his speed.

Chase knew he had to end the chase. He suddenly slammed on his breaks and dropped back. He swung to the other side of a lorry. Brutus began to crane his neck backwards to catch sight of his hunter, but he had no luck.

Suddenly out from behind the lorry came, Chase's Mustang. The battered Mustang came streaming down at Brutus, but Chase had judged the angle wrong. The rear end of his car was clipped by a lorry. He was spun sideways and as he thought to correct his mistake,yet he wrenched the wheel too much. It was at that point, Chase knew he had messed up. He felt the car begin to roll and roll it did.

Brutus glanced back in his mirror and saw the rolling car, with out a second's hesitation he put his foot down and soon the wreckage was left behind. 

Chase pulled himself out of the wreckage and collapsed back down on the grassy verge. He could tell his leg was broken, just by the angle of it. His pain heightened his anger and so he let out a feral scream. Brutus had escaped him. Brutus had reached Mexico. Brutus couldn't be touched over there by an American bounty hunter.

The hunt was over.


End file.
